1. Technical Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to the field of accessing emergency services telephonically using a wireless telecommunications network, and more particularly to emergency telephone access at an international level.
2. Description of Related Art
In the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), an emergency call code is defined for making emergency calls. Typically, an emergency number is used to indicate to the mobile terminal that an emergency call must be initiated, and then an emergency call setup is performed, the setup being specialized in order to get priority in the network. The particular emergency number actually dialed by the user is of little importance, as long as the emergency is recognized and indicated in the call setup, and the call is then routed to an emergency center based on the call setup.
It is common for mobile terminals to include removable smart cards (UICC) which contain a Universal Subscriber Identity Module (USIM). The UICC is an IC card, and thus the UICC holds an integrated circuit containing subscriber data, end user data, authentication data, and/or application data for one or more applications. Emergency call codes are stored in the UICC in a data file named xe2x80x9cEmergency Call Codesxe2x80x9d (EFecc). This elementary file can contain one or more emergency call codes. When the user dials a number on the keyboard (e.g. 911) it is compared with the number stored in EFECC. If the number entered from the keyboard matches a number in EFECC, the call is set up as an emergency call, regardless of what that particular number is.
The structure of the data file (EFECC) is exemplified by the following table:
This table can be found in technical specification 3G TS 31.102. This EFECC data file contains a set of emergency numbers, maximum 6 digits. The intention with this data file is that it contains various different national emergency call numbers. Typically, up to five emergency call codes have been contained in an EFECC (i.e. n=5). If the serving network does not recognize any of the xe2x80x9cnxe2x80x9d emergency call codes, then it is usual for the call to be routed to default emergency numbers. In case there is no match with the dialed number and the numbers stored in the EFECC, the mobile device checks the default emergency numbers that are stored internally in the mobile device for a match. If there is a match, then the call is set up as an emergency call. These default numbers are also available when a USIM is not present. This is discussed in technical specification 3G TS 22.101. In this related art system, various emergency signals may be sent from a mobile terminal, but those emergency signals will all have the same purpose: to connect the user to a particular emergency center via a particular phone number.
The user is familiar with the national numbers, like 911 in the U.S. Dialing a national emergency call number, when roaming internationally, automatically sets up an emergency call to an emergency center in the roaming network. The actual number entered is in this case not important as long as it matches an entry in the emergency call code data file. In other words, 911 could be dialed by the user even in a country that does not recognize 911 as an emergency number, because the terminal and network know to dial the correct number.
If there are different particular numbers used for emergency calls to the police, ambulance and fire brigade, that can be indicated by sending the particular dialed number to the network during the emergency call setup. This may work on a national basis, where each emergency number is uniquely defined.
In case of a roaming situation across international borders, however, the country where the user is travelling may have a different emergency call number scenario from the home country. The roaming network cannot, based on the number submitted with the emergency call setup, determine the type of emergency service requested. As a worst case, the same numbers may be used in the roaming network and the home network for emergency calls, but with different meanings. As an example, the ambulance emergency call number in the user""s home network may be the same as the emergency call number for the fire brigade in the roaming network. This makes it impossible to use the dialed emergency number for call routability, because the call may end up at the wrong emergency center.
This problem has not been solved on an international level. On a national level, the problem has been solved by using different emergency numbers. As the same number may be used in different countries for different emergency services, it is currently impossible to guarantee the correct emergency service. When roaming internationally, since the number dialed is based on a national emergency numbering scenario stored in the USIM (which is located in the terminal""s smart card), the dialed number submitted at the emergency call setup may route the emergency call to a totally different emergency service. In other words, the dialed number is interpreted according to the emergency numbering scenario in the roaming network, which may be a different scenario from the scenario stored in the USIM.
International agreement about a coding scenario may be able to indicate which type of emergency service is needed based on the number dialed. Then the emergency number dialed could be converted to the corresponding emergency service in the roaming network. Until such an agreement, an emergency number may indicate a different type of emergency in different countries, and some countries will not have specific numbers for different types of emergencies. Also, some terminal users will not want to memorize more than one number even in their home country.
When roaming internationally, it will be convenient for the user to be able to use the emergency numbers that she is accustomed to using in order to reach emergency services of different types. It will also be convenient for the user to obtain display information about the various emergency services available, prior to actually contacting those emergency services. This invention thus enhances the use of emergency numbers in a mobile telecommunications network, allowing the user to make a variety of emergency calls having a plurality of different functions.
According to this invention, an emergency call is set up in a special way, in the context of the mobile communication network. The emergency call is routed to the closest emergency center(s), depending upon what kind of an emergency is involved.
This invention permits an alpha identifier to be added to the emergency call number. This alpha tag allows the user to access a display in order to identify the type of emergency center to which the emergency call will be connected. The display information is stored in the USIM within the mobile phone. Furthermore, the invention defines a service category that can be used in the network to route the emergency call to the appropriate emergency center (police, ambulance, fire brigade, etc.).
The alpha tagging solves the problem of indicating to the user which emergency service can be called. The service category solves the problem of giving a location-independent indication to the network of what type emergency service is requested.
The invention discloses a new and unique method for providing an emergency call by a user of a mobile phone to a mobile phone network, comprising two unique steps: (1) inputting an emergency call number to a mobile phone; and (2) attaching to the emergency call number a location-independent emergency service category that is identified by each mobile network in the same way regardless of country. The location-independent emergency service category (also known as a call type indicator) identifies emergencies such as general rescue, police ambulance, fire, or a combination thereof. The emergency call number is typically provided by a user in an emergency situation where there is a need for one or more of the aforementioned emergency services. Another step of this method includes attaching to an emergency call code an emergency call code alpha tag identifier so that once a user has dialed an emergency number the user may scroll a display of the mobile phone for available emergency services, for example, in case the emergency number entered did not correspond to a desired emergency service. The entering of the emergency number would act as a trigger to view emergency services numbers to the user. After a predetermined time, an emergency call having a location-independent emergency service category attached thereto would be provided to the mobile network if an alternative emergency call number is not selected by the user.
This method also includes automatically routing the emergency call to a corresponding emergency call center in the mobile network. The method further includes maintaining an emergency call code data file in the mobile phone with the location-independent emergency service categories, the emergency call code, and/or the emergency call code alpha tag identifier.